World's top 10 consumers of oil
Oil, or black gold, is the single most important commodity in the world today.
Scientists say that the world's oil reserves could run dry over the next 30 to 50 years, crippling the world's economy. Which means that new oil reserves will have to be found, or alternative sources of energy will have to be developed, or the consumption of oil will have to drastically reduced.
The globe uses up almost 82 million barrels of oil every day, or 30 billion barrels per year, and the consumption is constantly growing by the day, with economies like India and China growing at breakneck speed.
So which are the world's largest users of petroleum? Read on to find out the top 10 consumers of oil. . .
1. United States
The United States of America is the single largest consumer of oil.
It uses as much as 20.73 million barrels per day!
2. China
A fast growing China is the world's second largest user of oil.
The world's most populous nation uses 6.534 million barrels per day.
3. Japan
Japan is the third largest consumer of oil.
The Asian nation consumes 5.578 million barrels per day.
4. Germany
Germany is the fourth biggest consumer of oil in the world.
It uses 2.650 million barrels per day.
5. Russia
Russia is the fifth largest consumer of oil.
It uses 2.500 million barrels per day.
6. India
India is the sixth largest consumer of oil.
It burns up 2.450 million barrels per day.
7. Canada
Canada is the world's seventh largest consumer of oil.
It uses 2.294 million barrels per day.
8. South Korea
South Korea is the world's eighth largest consumer of oil.
It uses up 2.149 million barrels of oil per day.
9. Brazil
Brazil is the ninth largest user of oil.
It guzzles 2.100 million barrels per day.
10. France
France is the world's tenth largest consumer of oil.
It devours 1.970 million barrels per day.
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Source: Rediff
25 July 2008
RIL understated profits fearing windfall tax: SP Tulsian
RIL understated profits fearing windfall tax: SP Tulsian
Reliance Industries has posted 13.2% growth in its net profit at Rs 4,110 crore for the quarter ended June 2008 as against Rs 3,630 crore in the same period of last year. Gross refining margin, or GRM stood at USD 15.70 per barrel. Petro-chemicals revenues went up by 12.7% at Rs 14,871 crore and EBIT margin improved by 10.6% from 10.4% (QoQ). Refining revenues were up by 45.9% at Rs 32,587 crore and EBIT margin declined by 9.3% versus 9.9% (QoQ).
SP Tulsian of Sptulsian.com said results of the refinery segment look disappointing. According to him, the company seems to have understated profit mainly fearing windfall profit tax on the refinery segment.
According to Jigar Shah, Senior Vice-President and Head of Research, KIM ENG Securities, there was a lot of volatility because of rising raw material prices. "That has resulted in refining margins being lower than what was expected. The way crude prices had shot up, the expectation was that GRM for the quarter would be higher on a sequential basis."
Excerpts from CNBC-TV18’s exclusive interview with SP Tulsian and Jigar Shah:
Q: Would you call it a disappointment?
Tulsian: The results from the refinery segment look disappointing. The Rs 3,040 crore EBIT is Rs 2,839 crore if compared sequentially, which means it has just increased by Rs 200 crore. Q4 had a realisation of less than Rs 40 per dollar. This quarter has seen a higher currency rate of at least Rs 42. So, even a 4% currency benefit is not factoring in profitability.
There has been a steep increase in the price of crude. The company always carries inventory of about Rs 14,000 crore. So, even if I presume 25%, it works out to about Rs 3,500 crore of crude oil, which should give an inventory gain of about Rs 200-400 crore.
Apart from that, they have seen better gross refining margins, or GRMs, of 20 cents, which should give them an extra profit of maybe Rs 60-70 crore. On the refinery segment, the company seems to have understated the profit mainly fearing windfall profit tax. It does not want to give too rosy a picture that the refinery segment has shown very good profitability. That may attract the attention of the regulator or maybe the government and tempt them to go for windfall profit tax.
Q: Would say that GRMs at 15.7% are an understatement?
Tulsian: Crude prices have risen from about USD 110 per barrel on an average for the March quarter to about USD 130 per barrel. So, there is a proportionate increase in GRMs with an increase in crude prices. If crude rises by about 20%, then GRMs must rise by 10% because they have been refining heavy crude with a high sulphur content. The refinery produces about 1 lakh tonne of sulphur residues every month. It has given them very good realization. Sulphur prices which used to rule at about Rs 2 per kg a couple of years back, is now sold at around Rs 34 per kg.
There has not been a sharp increase in the two quarters on a sequential basis. There has been an increment continually. They have a huge recovery of sulphur. It should give them an extra profit to the extent of about Rs 50-70 crore alone from waste products. If one adds all these things, a Rs 200 crore increase in EBDITA, the refinery segment seems to be understated.
Q: What have you made of the numbers? Would you say that the performance is below par or would you attribute the motive and say that perhaps there is an understatement of profit?
Shah: It is not an understatement. In both businesses, there is a lot of volatility because of rising raw materials. That has resulted in lower refining margins than what was expected. The way crude prices had shot up, expectations were that GRM for the quarter would be higher on a sequential basis.
That has not happened in a very sharp manner because the product mix could have undergone some change. The petrochemical margin fall is very much on expected lines because naphtha prices were ruling high. They would have impacted the company’s overall costing.
Going forward with further availability of gas as feedstock, the overall performance can improve. The second half should be much better, because we also have KG Basin gas coming in. My outlook for the company does not change and excluding KG Basin production, 20% kind of profit growth looks reasonable.
Q: The company should have enjoyed the benefits of a depreciating rupee, inspite of that you are seeing that refining revenues have not lived up to expectations, which is barely Rs 200 crore over the previous quarter. Doesn’t this come as a surprise?
Shah: The rupee appreciation during the April-June quarter has taken a lot of companies by surprise. A lot of export-oriented companies instead of gaining have ended up losing on foreign exchange. So, I am not surprised on that angle because clearly people had not expected such a sharp upward movement in the rupee.Operating performance seems to be okay. The profit on the refining side has been below expectations. But one quarter is not sufficient to make a judgment and whether that is going to follow in the subsequent period.
Source: Indiaearnings.com
Reliance Industries has posted 13.2% growth in its net profit at Rs 4,110 crore for the quarter ended June 2008 as against Rs 3,630 crore in the same period of last year. Gross refining margin, or GRM stood at USD 15.70 per barrel. Petro-chemicals revenues went up by 12.7% at Rs 14,871 crore and EBIT margin improved by 10.6% from 10.4% (QoQ). Refining revenues were up by 45.9% at Rs 32,587 crore and EBIT margin declined by 9.3% versus 9.9% (QoQ).
SP Tulsian of Sptulsian.com said results of the refinery segment look disappointing. According to him, the company seems to have understated profit mainly fearing windfall profit tax on the refinery segment.
According to Jigar Shah, Senior Vice-President and Head of Research, KIM ENG Securities, there was a lot of volatility because of rising raw material prices. "That has resulted in refining margins being lower than what was expected. The way crude prices had shot up, the expectation was that GRM for the quarter would be higher on a sequential basis."
Excerpts from CNBC-TV18’s exclusive interview with SP Tulsian and Jigar Shah:
Q: Would you call it a disappointment?
Tulsian: The results from the refinery segment look disappointing. The Rs 3,040 crore EBIT is Rs 2,839 crore if compared sequentially, which means it has just increased by Rs 200 crore. Q4 had a realisation of less than Rs 40 per dollar. This quarter has seen a higher currency rate of at least Rs 42. So, even a 4% currency benefit is not factoring in profitability.
There has been a steep increase in the price of crude. The company always carries inventory of about Rs 14,000 crore. So, even if I presume 25%, it works out to about Rs 3,500 crore of crude oil, which should give an inventory gain of about Rs 200-400 crore.
Apart from that, they have seen better gross refining margins, or GRMs, of 20 cents, which should give them an extra profit of maybe Rs 60-70 crore. On the refinery segment, the company seems to have understated the profit mainly fearing windfall profit tax. It does not want to give too rosy a picture that the refinery segment has shown very good profitability. That may attract the attention of the regulator or maybe the government and tempt them to go for windfall profit tax.
Q: Would say that GRMs at 15.7% are an understatement?
Tulsian: Crude prices have risen from about USD 110 per barrel on an average for the March quarter to about USD 130 per barrel. So, there is a proportionate increase in GRMs with an increase in crude prices. If crude rises by about 20%, then GRMs must rise by 10% because they have been refining heavy crude with a high sulphur content. The refinery produces about 1 lakh tonne of sulphur residues every month. It has given them very good realization. Sulphur prices which used to rule at about Rs 2 per kg a couple of years back, is now sold at around Rs 34 per kg.
There has not been a sharp increase in the two quarters on a sequential basis. There has been an increment continually. They have a huge recovery of sulphur. It should give them an extra profit to the extent of about Rs 50-70 crore alone from waste products. If one adds all these things, a Rs 200 crore increase in EBDITA, the refinery segment seems to be understated.
Q: What have you made of the numbers? Would you say that the performance is below par or would you attribute the motive and say that perhaps there is an understatement of profit?
Shah: It is not an understatement. In both businesses, there is a lot of volatility because of rising raw materials. That has resulted in lower refining margins than what was expected. The way crude prices had shot up, expectations were that GRM for the quarter would be higher on a sequential basis.
That has not happened in a very sharp manner because the product mix could have undergone some change. The petrochemical margin fall is very much on expected lines because naphtha prices were ruling high. They would have impacted the company’s overall costing.
Going forward with further availability of gas as feedstock, the overall performance can improve. The second half should be much better, because we also have KG Basin gas coming in. My outlook for the company does not change and excluding KG Basin production, 20% kind of profit growth looks reasonable.
Q: The company should have enjoyed the benefits of a depreciating rupee, inspite of that you are seeing that refining revenues have not lived up to expectations, which is barely Rs 200 crore over the previous quarter. Doesn’t this come as a surprise?
Shah: The rupee appreciation during the April-June quarter has taken a lot of companies by surprise. A lot of export-oriented companies instead of gaining have ended up losing on foreign exchange. So, I am not surprised on that angle because clearly people had not expected such a sharp upward movement in the rupee.Operating performance seems to be okay. The profit on the refining side has been below expectations. But one quarter is not sufficient to make a judgment and whether that is going to follow in the subsequent period.
Source: Indiaearnings.com
Wall St slides on weak housing data (Dow: down 283 pts)
Wall St slides on weak housing data
Wall Street went into a nosedive on Thursday as a weaker-than-expected report on the US housing market raised fresh fears about an economic recovery and ended a rush into banking stocks. Record losses reported by Ford Motor Co, forced to step up its restructuring, also contributed to the negative tone in the market.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 283.19 points (2.43 percent) to close at 11,349.28 and the Nasdaq composite shed 45.77 points (1.97 percent) to 2,280.11. The broad-market Standard & Poor's 500 index retreated 29.65 points (2.31 percent) to 1,252.54. Losses intensified as the National Association of Realtors reported US home sales fell another 2.6 percent in June to a 10-year low as inventories rose and prices fell with buyers still hesitant in the face of a horrific market slump.
The seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.86 million units is 15.5 percent lower than in June 2007. "Right now, we don't have enough data to argue that conditions (in the housing market) have bottomed," said Joel Naroff at Naroff Economic Advisors. "And that is something that could cause equity investors to worry as the financial problems will not ease until housing has turned." Peter Kreztmer at Bank of America added, "To a market looking for evidence of a bottom in the sales pace, the report disappointingly indicated that the downtrend is continuing for now."
Crude oil futures rebounded, gaining 1.05 dollars to close at $125.49 a barrel in New York. The S&P banking index slid some 7.2 percent, leading the declines. Among key financial groups, Citigroup slumped 9.7 percent to 19.06 dollars and Bank of America shed 2.8 percent to 30.64. Among other key stocks, Ford skidded 15.5 percent to 5.11 dollars after reporting its worst quarterly loss ever at 8.7 billion dollars and new transformation efforts while warning that it does not see a US economic recovery until 2010.
Elsewhere, 3M rose 0.35 percent to 71.05 dollars as the maker of industrial and consumer products reported a rise in profit and revenue. Amazon.com rallied 11.6 percent to 78.72 dollars after surprising the market with a stronger-than-expected profit of 158 million dollars. Dow Chemical fell 3.3 percent to 33.11 dollars as its earnings came up short of expectations. Southwest Airlines fell 6.2 percent to $14.90 as traders focused on the industry's woes from high fuel costs and shrugged off a better-than-expected profit report.
Bonds rose sharply. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury bond fell to 4.016 percent from 4.148 percent Wednesday while that on the 30-year bond eased to 4.611 percent against 4.700 percent. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions. In Europe, shares also fell sharply as weak economic reports pointed to more trouble on that side of the Atlantic. London's FTSE fell 1.61 percent and France's CAC 40 skidded 1.38 percent. The Frankfurt DAX index retreated 1.46 percent.
-------------------------------------
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Source:ET
Wall Street went into a nosedive on Thursday as a weaker-than-expected report on the US housing market raised fresh fears about an economic recovery and ended a rush into banking stocks. Record losses reported by Ford Motor Co, forced to step up its restructuring, also contributed to the negative tone in the market.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 283.19 points (2.43 percent) to close at 11,349.28 and the Nasdaq composite shed 45.77 points (1.97 percent) to 2,280.11. The broad-market Standard & Poor's 500 index retreated 29.65 points (2.31 percent) to 1,252.54. Losses intensified as the National Association of Realtors reported US home sales fell another 2.6 percent in June to a 10-year low as inventories rose and prices fell with buyers still hesitant in the face of a horrific market slump.
The seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.86 million units is 15.5 percent lower than in June 2007. "Right now, we don't have enough data to argue that conditions (in the housing market) have bottomed," said Joel Naroff at Naroff Economic Advisors. "And that is something that could cause equity investors to worry as the financial problems will not ease until housing has turned." Peter Kreztmer at Bank of America added, "To a market looking for evidence of a bottom in the sales pace, the report disappointingly indicated that the downtrend is continuing for now."
Crude oil futures rebounded, gaining 1.05 dollars to close at $125.49 a barrel in New York. The S&P banking index slid some 7.2 percent, leading the declines. Among key financial groups, Citigroup slumped 9.7 percent to 19.06 dollars and Bank of America shed 2.8 percent to 30.64. Among other key stocks, Ford skidded 15.5 percent to 5.11 dollars after reporting its worst quarterly loss ever at 8.7 billion dollars and new transformation efforts while warning that it does not see a US economic recovery until 2010.
Elsewhere, 3M rose 0.35 percent to 71.05 dollars as the maker of industrial and consumer products reported a rise in profit and revenue. Amazon.com rallied 11.6 percent to 78.72 dollars after surprising the market with a stronger-than-expected profit of 158 million dollars. Dow Chemical fell 3.3 percent to 33.11 dollars as its earnings came up short of expectations. Southwest Airlines fell 6.2 percent to $14.90 as traders focused on the industry's woes from high fuel costs and shrugged off a better-than-expected profit report.
Bonds rose sharply. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury bond fell to 4.016 percent from 4.148 percent Wednesday while that on the 30-year bond eased to 4.611 percent against 4.700 percent. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions. In Europe, shares also fell sharply as weak economic reports pointed to more trouble on that side of the Atlantic. London's FTSE fell 1.61 percent and France's CAC 40 skidded 1.38 percent. The Frankfurt DAX index retreated 1.46 percent.
-------------------------------------
Other Top stories from ET
Top 10 airports
Major direct tax reform in offing
Arctic holds 90 bn barrels of oil
Heard on the Street
Time for reforms
Rolta, Nestle in S&P 2008 Global Challengers List
Pantaloon board approves DVR bonus issue
Source:ET
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